Song Experiments

Earlier this evening, I decided to go to the book store to write, so I could work with no...well, different distractions. It proved to be a successful endeavor, I wrote an article and a half while sitting in a corner of the teen book section. I ended up there not so much by choice, but by virtue of the fact there were no available outlets in the cafe, and there was one here, untouched. I also allowed myself to indulge in a guilty pleasure. I bought two books. i usually avoid the book store, knowing that I am likely to buy something, even if I don't really have the money. However, i thought today, i would reward myself for my efforts. After all, what can be so terrible about splurging on a book by Oliver Sacks? if you haven't heard of him, he is a neurologist, and has a few shows on TV where he talks about how music affects the human brain, or as he would say, "bwain." Fascinating.

This morning, Brett, our cinematographer came to rehearsal to view the material for the film to continue finalizing our shot list. I think everything is coming together nicely, and if we are prepared, we can get everything shot on schedule! That is my deepest hope for this film, to have it done in a timely fashion, with few (notice I didn't say "No") hitches.

In Linda's rehearsal, we proceeded to put all of the sections we have for the piece together. Though some of the transitions need some tweaking and some things need changing around yet, the piece is coming together nicely. I think we will have a lot of fun performing this piece for the children at all the libraries on our little tour!

This moment, I am back at home. I have just completed some sonic experiments for the songs I've been working on for my quilt piece. I think the most successful experiment was the one where I recorded my voice under the covers. It sounded surprisingly clean, but still having an air of the intimacy I want for the piece. Yay! I feel like I'm learning so much about music and sound, and I've only just begun to delve into this type of work. I also recorded in the closet, which worked well, and in the stairwell, which gave me a sound a little more epic sounding than I think I'd like for this piece. What's more, as I keep recording and listening to my voice in the context of these two songs, I am realizing that they sound better with a little bit of imperfection. When one is being sung to as a child, or even as an adult, by someone they love, the imperfections give the songs character, an intimacy and an individuality that produced songs don't have. I want to express this intimacy and individuality in these pieces of music. I don't want to over-produce them and make them sound glossy, which is entirely too easy to do with all the sound programs Rob has on his computer. Pro-tools can do wonders for my voice. but the wonders are no fun! I am very much looking forward to sharing these experiments with Rob when he gets home later tonight and with my friend Laura, who is a magnificent singer and composer!

So now, a quiet rest of my night, and soon to bed.

~Cara